Burnham's 'everyday fixes' strategy: popular small policies or fiddling while Rome burns?

PM's focus on potholes, bus fares and loud music on trains draws praise and scorn

By LineZotpaper

Published23 October 2026

Read Time3 min

Prime Minister Andy Burnham has staked his early premiership on a blitz of small-bore policy announcements, from filling potholes to banning loud TikTok videos on public transport, aiming to show the government is on people's side. The strategy has drawn mockery from Reform UK and the Conservatives, who accuse him of ignoring bigger crises, but polling suggests it is resonating with voters.

In his first three months in office, Andy Burnham has announced a series of what his team calls "everyday fixes": a £2 cap on single bus fares across England, a plan to remove VAT from electricity bills, action on auto-renew subscriptions, a crackdown on rip-off private car park fines, and a pledge to fill potholes across 7,000 miles of roads. One of the most attention-grabbing moves was a promise to clamp down on people playing loud music or videos on public transport without headphones.

Government insiders say the ideas come from a cross-departmental process led by Louise Haigh, the first secretary of state, who runs taskforces on cost of living, public control and regeneration. Ideas are "kicked around" between the Cabinet Office and No 10's policy unit. "There is a very intentional drumbeat of those because they do make a difference," one source said. "It's constantly showing people that we understand where those frustrations and low-level pressures are."

The small-fix strategy has not won universal approval. Reform UK's Robert Jenrick said Britain was "going down the pan and our prime minister is faffing around tweaking parking tickets". The former Olympian Sharron Davies compared Burnham's focus unfavourably with the Paris riots. Kemi Badenoch, the Conservative leader, told Prime Minister's Questions: "We are spending more on interest payments than we do on schools, the army and the police combined. Meanwhile, the prime minister is worrying about loud music on trains. This is not serious." Burnham replied that he would not "apologise for doing the small things that help people have better lives".

Polling from More in Common suggests the approach may be working: 45% of respondents said Burnham understood the pressure of high energy bills on ordinary people, compared with 23% who said the same of his predecessor, Keir Starmer. Luke Tryl, the polling group's director, said the Tories and Reform had misjudged the public mood. "People care about immigration, about the NHS – but they also care about everyday frictions."

Despite the early enthusiasm, some advisers acknowledge the strategy's limits. One insider said the government needed a "twin-track" approach, combining small fixes with bigger structural reforms that would be laid out in a 10-year plan. Ed Shackle of Public First Global warned that the popularity boost from quick fixes was fragile: "The government should be under no illusion that as soon as any real substantive event rears its head, any small popularity boost will be instantly blown away."

Analysis

Why This Matters

The 'everyday fixes' strategy is an attempt by a new government to rebuild trust in the state's ability to act, after years of political stagnation. If it works, it could set a template for how governments regain a reputation for competence.
Critics argue it distracts from deeper problems: underfunded public services, high debt and a cost-of-living crisis that quick wins cannot solve.
The next serious domestic crisis, whether economic or social, will test whether the public's goodwill is durable or merely a sugar-hit.

Background

Andy Burnham became prime minister after winning the Labour leadership following Keir Starmer's resignation. He has aimed to position himself as a more populist, everyday figure who understands the frustrations of ordinary voters. The 'everyday fixes' strategy was central from his first day in office, with Louise Haigh given a mandate to drive cross-government cost-of-living and regeneration taskforces. The approach draws on Labour's earlier work under Starmer, but is being pushed harder and faster under Burnham.

Key Perspectives

Burnham and his team: The small policies show the government is on people's side and can achieve tangible improvements, even on minor grievances. They believe the approach cuts through a noisy news cycle and builds momentum for bigger reforms. Opposition (Reform UK and Conservatives): They dismiss the announcements as trivial distractions from major challenges like the economy, public services and national debt. Badenoch accused Burnham of being unserious by focusing on loud music on trains while Rome burns. Voters and pollsters: Polling suggests the strategy resonates across left and right, with voters appreciating action on daily nuisances. But experts warn the effect could evaporate if a substantive crisis hits, and that quick fixes are no substitute for fixing the big issues the public care about.

What to Watch

Whether the government can maintain the drumbeat of small announcements without running out of ideas or hitting budget constraints.
The release of the 10-year plan, which is expected to deliver the "big picture" structural reforms that the twin-track approach promises.
The next major economic or social event, a recession, a strike wave, a geopolitical shock, that will test whether the daily-fix strategy can survive a serious crisis.

Sources

Potholes, bus fares and headphone dodgers: will Burnham’s strategy of ‘everyday fixes’ succeed? · UK news | The Guardian

Checked

12 claims in this story checked against 1 source: 8 supported.

Show each claim

SupportedThe headline frames Burnham’s small-policy approach as potentially popular but also as “fiddling while Rome burns.”UK news | The Guardian: “the focus on minor grievances is a canny strategy that appears to be working”
Partly supportedBurnham pledged to ban loud TikTok videos on public transport.UK news | The Guardian: “Andy Burnham has vowed to clamp down on social pariahs blaring out TikTok videos on public transport”
SupportedReform UK and the Conservatives accused Burnham of ignoring bigger crises.UK news | The Guardian: “Reprising the theme at prime minister’s questions on Wednesday, the leader of the opposition implicitly accused Burnham of fiddling while Rome burns.”
Partly supportedRobert Jenrick said Britain was “going down the pan and our prime minister is faffing around tweaking parking tickets”.UK news | The Guardian: “Reform UK’s Robert Jenrick said the UK was “going down the pan and our prime minister is faffing around tweaking parking tickets””
SupportedThe pothole pledge covered 7,000 miles of roads.UK news | The Guardian: “on Thursday – fill in potholes in 7,000 miles of England’s roads.”
SupportedThe bus-fare policy was a £2 cap on single fares across England.UK news | The Guardian: “a £2 cap on single bus fares across England”
Partly supportedLouise Haigh led the cross-departmental process and runs taskforces on cost of living, public control and regeneration.UK news | The Guardian: “Burnham gave his close ally Louise Haigh, the first secretary of state, the job of establishing taskforces for three core areas – cost of living, public control and regeneration.”
SupportedAn insider said there was “a very intentional drumbeat” of policies because they made a difference and showed the government understood people’s frustrations.UK news | The Guardian: “There is a very intentional drumbeat of those because they do make a difference, but also it’s constantly showing people that we understand where those frustrations and low-level pressures are.”
Partly supportedSharron Davies compared Burnham’s focus unfavourably with the Paris riots.UK news | The Guardian: “The former Olympian Sharron Davies said: “As Paris burns our prime minister has stopped people playing loud music on buses & trains,””
SupportedKemi Badenoch said: “We are spending more on interest payments than we do on schools, the army and the police combined. Meanwhile, the prime minister is worrying about loud music on trains. This is not serious.”UK news | The Guardian: ““We are spending more on interest payments than we do on schools, the army and the police combined,” she said. “Meanwhile, the prime minister is worrying about loud music on trains. This is not serious.””
SupportedBurnham said he would not “apologise for doing the small things that help people have better lives”.UK news | The Guardian: ““I’m not going to apologise for doing the small things that help people have better lives,” he said sombrely”
SupportedMore in Common polling found that 45% said Burnham understood the pressure of high energy bills, compared with 23% for Keir Starmer.UK news | The Guardian: “45% said he did. When the same question was asked about Starmer, that figure was 23%.”